1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an inkjet recording apparatus and an inkjet recording method for performing recording with a recording head that discharges ink.
2. Description of the Related Art
An inkjet recording apparatus is an advantageous recording type which is capable of providing a high-density and high-speed recording operation, with low operating cost and low noise. Hence, such inkjet recording apparatuses are commercialized as output apparatuses in various forms.
A coloring agent applied to ink for inkjet recording is a water-soluble dye in view of an image quality such as saturation and color reproducibility of a colorant, a variety of colorants to be used, solubility to water, and ejection reliability like nozzle clogging. However, specifications, such as light resistance and water resistance, of a dye may be insufficient, and a recorded object recorded with dye ink may have insufficient light resistance and water resistance. A pigment has the light resistance and water resistance which are superior to those of the dye. In recent years, the pigment has been used as a coloring agent applied to ink for inkjet recording so as to increase the light resistance and water resistance. Regarding a recorded object recorded with pigment ink, the pigment ink remains on a surface of a recording medium unlike the dye ink which permeates into the recording medium. It is difficult to have scratch resistance which represents resistance of an image when the recorded object is scratched with a nail or rubbed with cloth or the like. Owing to this, to increase the scratch resistance of the recorded object recorded with the pigment ink, a technique has been suggested, in which resin is added to ink, thereby achieving the increase in scratch resistance.
For example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 11-349875 suggests a technique in which an ink composition includes fine polymer (resin) particles having a ligand structure capable of forming a metal ion and a chelate. With the technique, the ink composition adheres to a recording medium, and water and a water-soluble organic solvent near the fine polymer particles permeate into the recording medium. A film, in which the fine resin particles are subjected to coalescence and fusion and which includes a coloring material, is formed on the recording medium. Thus, an obtained image has high scratch resistance and high water resistance.